Typically, a fishing line guide provided on a fishing rod includes an opening formed by a guide ring through which a fishing line is to be passed, and a leg to be placed and fixed on the surface of the fishing rod. A fishing rod has a plurality of fishing line guides fixed on the surface thereof and arranged longitudinally at regular intervals. An example of known methods for fixing a fishing line guide on the surface of a fishing rod is to bind the leg of the fishing line guide onto the surface of the fishing rod with a thread and then apply a resin (thread setting agent) to the thread wound on the leg, as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 551-35596.
There is known a fishing line guide (also referred to as a free guide) not placed on the surface of the fishing rod but having different structure as disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. H03-25569, which has an insertion hole through which the fishing rod is to be inserted so as to fix the fishing line guide on the fishing rod by press-fitting or adhesion. This fishing line guide is also known to have unevenness in the inner surface of the member around the insertion hole to be contacted with the surface of the fishing rod, thereby to prevent rotation of the fishing line guide relative to the fishing rod.
In the above method of fixing the fishing line guide disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. S51-35596, the weight of the fishing rod may be increased in connection with the thickness of the thread necessary to ensure the fixing and the amount of the thread setting agent applied. In addition, it is difficult to maintain the strength for a long period in a harsh fishing environment; a crack may occur in the thread setting agent and the fishing line guide may come off due to bending of the fishing rod. Further, this method requires a skill in fixing the fishing line guide, leading to instable qualities and higher costs. The fixing method disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. H03-25569 is applied mainly to rod joints of the fishing rod Since the small adhesion area with the fishing rod leads to an insufficient adhesion strength, the fishing line guide tends to come off.